`Balma` opened other ventures for me in India: Claudia Ciesla

New Delhi: After being the pretty inmate in ‘Bigg Boss 3’, Polish-German model Claudia Ciesla says her item song in the recently released Akshay Kumar-starrer ‘Khiladi 786’ has made her a well-known face in the industry.

The 35-year-old model-actress said she is getting many offers down South too following her raunchy number `Balma`, where she shook a leg with the film`s lead actors Akshay and Asin Thottumkal. "I am getting praises from the industry after my item number. Even Akshay sir praised me when he saw the song for the first time. I am getting many offers including Bollywood, Southern film industry, advertisements and many others. I will concentrate on acting now. I am lucky to be a part of this song because it gave me an identity in India," Claudia told reporters. She has no inhibitions in doing dance numbers and would like to do more of them in the future. "I would love to be called an item girl. It`s a respectable position now because all the main actresses in the industry are doing item songs, be it Kareena or Katrina. It`s a good platform for a newbie actress to show her acting and dancing skills through these dance numbers," she added. `Balma`, sung by Shreya Ghoshal and Sreeram, is a tribute to the legendary music director R D Burman. The song was choreographed by Ganesh Acharya. Claudia, who started her career at the age of 15 working for shows involved in fashion and dancing, bagged the offer couple of years back from Akshay`s production house Hari Om Entertainment. She met the Bollywood star on the sets of ‘Bigg Boss 3’ where Akshay came for the promotion of his then-released action film ‘Blue’. "I got a call from Akshay sir`s production house couple of years ago for doing an item song in `Khiladi 786`. I was excited because I was to share screen space with him and Ganesh Acharya was composing the song. It was a dream package for me," Claudia said. Claudia, who also participated in the reality show `Zor Ka Jhatka` and performed in National Games closing ceremony last year, says it is difficult to make a mark in the industry as it gives very limited space to outsiders. "It`s very difficult for us. We have to face many hurdles as there is a lot of competition in the industry. You have to have some extra-ordinary qualities to make your mark here," said Claudia. PTI